


Out of the Cauldron (Into the Fire)

by Drarrelie



Series: 52 Weeks of Drarry [1]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Broken Draco Malfoy, Community: hogwarts365, Drabble, Draco Malfoy's Trial, Facebook: The Pen15 is Mightier, Ficlet, Harry Potter Epilogue What Epilogue | EWE, Implied/Referenced Torture, Isolation, M/M, Ministry of Magic (Harry Potter), POV Draco Malfoy, POV Second Person, Psychological Torture
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-09
Updated: 2020-05-09
Packaged: 2021-03-03 04:02:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 365
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24088579
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Drarrelie/pseuds/Drarrelie
Summary: After weeks ofnothing,anythingcan be too much,everythingthoroughly unbearable — it's hard to say what's worse; where you were, where you are, or where you're going...This work is part of a series of connected weekly drabbles written during 2020.
Relationships: Draco Malfoy/Harry Potter
Series: 52 Weeks of Drarry [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1612318
Comments: 15
Kudos: 75





	Out of the Cauldron (Into the Fire)

**Author's Note:**

> [@hogwarts365](https://hogwarts365.tumblr.com/) drabble challenge, weekly prompts #337:  
> 1\. Fainted  
> 2\. (Facility)  
> 3\. Fathom
> 
> The Pen15 is Mightier weekly drabble prompt: Isolation
> 
> Thank you for the beta, [adavison](https://archiveofourown.org/users/adavison) 💙

Your footfalls echo in the gloomy corridor, yours and his, on the way to your doom. They’re not much — only regular muffled steps against a regular stone floor — yet, to your ears, the sound is nearly deafening. After all, for what feels like forever, all you’ve heard are your own ragged breaths, your own resigned sobs, and your own futile cries of despair.

You squint in the fainted glow from the sconces, no longer used to the light after weeks of near-complete darkness. The guard walking in front of you is the first person you’ve met since they locked you up, and he has yet to speak a word. You don’t mind, you probably wouldn’t be able to answer anyway, your vocal cords undoubtedly raw and inept from disuse.

You hate this place with all your heart, yet you hope against hope they won’t take you away, dreading the alternative even more. Deep down, though, you know that’s where you’ll end up after this, probably even tonight. You’ve been there once, visiting your father, and it was once too often.

In comparison, being held in isolation in the Ministry’s facilities has probably been a five-star experience. Most days you were even presented with food, appearing in your cell as if from nowhere, accompanied by a temporary faint light to help you discern at least a shadow of what you’ve been given. You tried to resist at first — you held out for several days — but in the end, you were too weak; too hungry not to eat what you could. It didn’t even matter that they’d magically rid it of all taste, smell, and colour.

The guard stops and gestures for you to sit. When you do, shackles bind you to the chair before you’re elevated through the ceiling.

It’s too bright. Too loud. There are colours, voices, smells, movements — everywhere. You’re overwhelmed, on the verge of panic, and you feel all eyes on you as the Chief Warlock calls to order.

An hour later, when the last witness is called forth, you know you’ll never see the light of day again.

“Harry James Potter.”

You can’t possibly fathom the motives behind his words.

...

“Not guilty.”

**Author's Note:**

> I love and cherish any and all feedback you’re willing to give me — kudos, comments and recommendations are my primary life sources.
> 
> For more interaction, please find me on [Tumblr](https://www.tumblr.com/blog/drarrelie)


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